Russiandefense ministry officials told Russian radio August 27 that thereare likely to be interruptions in the food supplies to Russiansoldiers during the next two or three weeks. The army is heavilyin debt to suppliers who increasingly are unwilling to providefood without payment. The ministry has... MORE

As the Russian government and central bank struggleto restart interbank relationships this week and thus end thefinancial crisis that began August 23, Deputy Premier AnatolyChubais told Russian radio August 26 that the government willtarget its financial infusions to "good" banks only.Chubais did not define which... MORE

Russian security council secretaryand now President Boris Yeltsin's special envoy to Chechnya OlegLobov arrived in Grozny August 28, Russian media reported. Lobov'saides said he had no immediate plans to meet the Chechen delegationto the peace talks and would instead cooperate with the SecurityCouncil delegation now... MORE

A business group has builta special new aircraft for Belarusian president Aleksandr Lukashenko,but Russian television announced August 23 that Russian presidentBoris Yeltsin won't be able to use the new plane built for him:the Russian government lacks the funds to pay for the advancedIL-96. The Monitor... MORE

The Uzbek governmenthas decided to establish a new center for the study of Islamicphilosophy and its relation to the history of the Uzbek people,Uzbek sources have told Monitor. Support for the new centerwill come from Kuwait's Society for the Revival of the IslamicLegacy. The Kuwaitis... MORE

Kyrgyzstan's leadingIslamic churchman, Mufti K. Abdurakhmanov, was voted out of officelast month; for failing to complete the construction of the Saudi-financedmain mosque in Bishkek and to prevent officials from demandingbribes to allow believers to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, Kyrgyzsources have told the Monitor. One... MORE

Russia's Lukoil and Kazakhstan's Yuzhneftegas companies have setup a $300 million joint venture to develop an oil deposit at Kumkolin Kazakhstan, Segodnya reported August 23. Meanwhile,Russia's Gazprom and Turkmenistan's petroleum ministry have signedan agreement on transporting Turkmen gas to Ukraine via Russiaand on oil and... MORE

Lt. Gen. Valerii Yevnevich, the Russian commander in Moldova'sTransdniester region, told Flux August 22 that Russian reportsthat his troops had begun to dispatch military equipment to Russiawere incorrect. Yevnevich said that he was still taking stockof the equipment and that eventually non-combat equipment willbe sold... MORE

Moldovan deputyinterior minister Mihai Gorincioi told Itar-Tass August 23 thatChisinau had completed the disarmament of Gagauz paramilitaryunits. He stressed that the voluntary handover of arms by theGagauz had been made possible by the establishment of genuineautonomy for the Gagauz people. Meanwhile, in Moldova's Transdniesterregion, the... MORE

The Russian foreign ministry sharply criticized Abkhazia for failingto live up to its earlier agreements with Moscow and Tbilisi,Russian radio reported August 23. On August 22, the Abkhaz SupremeSoviet had rejected a Russian-mediated protocol settling the Georgian-Abkhazdispute by federalizing Georgia. Instead, Abkhaz leader VladislavArdzinba demanded... MORE